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Samaná has always attracted visitors, although not so much
for the undisturbed stretches of white, palm-fringed, sandy beaches as for its important strategic geographical location. French incursions alternated with the intrusion of English and Dutch buccaneers and pirates. The natural safety of the bay made Samaná a focus for
ship-based commerce, with navigable river and rail links to the interior, and a region of immigration, attracting Haitians, Puerto Ricans, Jamaicans and other islanders from the
English-speaking Caribbean, not to mention the "English" from Philadelphia. The resultant cultural diversity and mix in Samaná is intriguing.
From African Methodist, Wesleyan to Catholic churches, from petroglyphs and pictographs to Barchata and Bamboulá, from Pica Pollo to "Donplin". Samaná has long attracted certain regular visitors. For eons humpback whales from the North Atlantic have migrated every
winter to the warm and protected waters of the Bay of Samaná. Under the strictest guidelines, developed by the Association of Boat Owners in Samaná and
CEBSE (Center for the Conservation and Ecodevelopment of Samaná Bay and its Environment), these playful colossi can be admired at fairly close range without intimidating mothers and their calves or risking your safety. This program operates at different levels: naturalist guide training, community education, working together with and
advising the local and national tourism industry, government organizations and development agencies. The mid-term aim is to develop tourism which brings economic benefits to the local
communities and the region, and conserves the outstanding natural beauty and resources for posterity and the long-term viability of the tourism sector.
The mid-term aim is to develop tourism which brings economic benefits to the local communities and the region, and conserves the outstanding natural beauty and resources for
posterity and the long-term viability of the tourism sector. |
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